Phillies'Manuel: "I ain't ready to leave."

Friday

Jan 25, 2013 at 2:00 PMJan 25, 2013 at 2:19 PM

Mandy Housenick

There was passion in Charlie Manuel's voice Thursday night when he talked about the 2013 season. Credit that mostly to the new faces who will make their way into the Bright House Field clubhouse for the first time.

The Phillies manager already is tinkering -- in his head -- with multiple lineups. He's of the belief that Jimmy Rollins won't play 158 games this year. And he'd much prefer having Antonio Bastardo be depended on in the seventh inning rather than the eighth.

That kind of talk can only last so long.

When the topic skidded away from the Xs and Os of baseball during the media portion of the Phillies Winter Banquet at the Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem and turned to his contract -- this is the last year of his deal -- that passion extended beyond just an energized tone of voice.

Manuel's face turned red as the words started coming out of his mouth faster than usual -- something for him that is a sure sign of added vigor.

"Do I want to manage the Phillies?" Manuel asked. "You're damn right. I ain't ready to leave. That's all I can say."

It's a question the 69-year-old will be asked this year with the frequency of a texting teenager. He knows that. He even said he needs to come up with a way to answer the question.

Manuel's ability to manage has been second-guessed by many over the years, but let's make this clear:

-- He is the winningest manager in Phillies history with 727 wins.

-- In his eight years at the helm from 2005-12, he's never had a losing season.

-- Four times his teams have recorded 92 wins or more.

-- His clubs have won the National League East five times.

-- The 102 wins in 2011 set a single-season record for any Phillies manager.

-- His teams made the postseason five years in a row (2007-11).

-- His teams have won two pennants and one World Series.

But he may not have a choice either during or after this season. The man many have pegged as Manuel's successor, Ryne Sandberg, was promoted from the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs to Philadelphia, where he will be the club's third-base coach.

If the front office feels the Hall of Fame second baseman is ready for a new venture after the 2013 season, that would close the door for Manuel in 2014.

And that's assuming the Phillies wait that long. If the club stumbles and finds itself out of contention by the All-Star break, the front office could opt to take the reins away from Manuel.

There's undoubtedly a perception that the Washington Nationals, who won the division last year, and the Atlanta Braves, the 2012 wild-card winners, have improved more this offseason than the Phillies.

"That's good if people think that," general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said. "I'd like to be an underdog. We were the favorites last year and we didn't do so well. Maybe the tides will turn."